Where are the Chilean miners now?

Chile is preparing the celebrate the first anniversary of the rescue of 33 miners who were trapped underground for 69 days.

The miners were freed a year ago, in a 22-hour rescue operation.

So where are they now? Reports the New York Times:

Only a handful of them have steady jobs, they say. Just four have returned to mining. Two others, Víctor Zamora and Darío Segovia, are trying to make ends meet by selling fruits and vegetables, one from a stall, the other out of his truck. …

Some miners have been paid to do interviews or give motivational speeches. But those opportunities proved fleeting for most. Now many are counting on a Hollywood movie about them — which still does not have a script — to be their economic savior.

Another miner is speaking out against substance abuse after entering a rehab facility for drugs and alcohol, reports the Santiago Times.

Best known for his love of music icon Elvis Presley, Peña made headlines when he ran the 2010 New York City Marathon and afterwards appeared on the Late Show with David Letterman, where he sang a few bars of Presley’s hit “Suspicious Minds” (watch the full interview here). …

“I used to drink before and after interviews, to get the adrenaline down, to calm down,” Peña told Sabado. “This is what I used do, it’s what I do: I clown around to disguise reality, but I’m feeling terrible on the inside.”

And as for the safety in the mines, working conditions appear to have improved, says the BBC.

The number of deaths from mining accidents in Chile has more than halved – to 12 in the first half of this year from 27 in the same period in 2010.

The government has kept its promise to increase the number of mine inspectors from 18 at the time of last year's accident to 45 now. Those officials have carried out more than 3,800 inspections this year, compared with fewer than 2,600 in the entire year 2010.

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Photo by Hugo Infante/AFP/Getty Images